Amid rising cost of cooking gas, women urged not to resort to firewood

From Paul Osuyi, Asaba

Despite the rising cost of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), the Noble Delta Women for Peace and Development International (NDWPD), a nonprofit, has insisted that using firewood as a means of cooking is not an alternative.

NDWPD said gas remained the cleanest and safest means of cooking, adding that the health implications of using firewood were enormous.

Executive Director of NDWPD Caroline Usikpedo-Oliseowe told reporters in Asaba, Delta State, that the rising cost of gas was a key governance issue that should be addressed by the Federal Government.

Oliseowe was speaking at a press conference on forest conservative and gender on the theme: “Impact of Women’s Participation in Community Forest Governance”.

She said the NGO in collaboration with Women Engage for a Common Future, Women Environment Programme, Kabetkatche and international partners, is building the capacity of community women to own and cherish forests with the ultimate aim of earning a living from it.

‘First is that we will not allow women to go back into the usage of firewood, rather we would train women on how to cherish forest and make an economic livelihood from it so that they would be able to afford whatever that is needed to cook.

‘For example in Uganda, there are a lot of women that own forest, you see significant improvement in their economic livelihood so they have money to afford whatever they want to afford.

‘A lot of things come with forest, so we are trying to say that women should get involved in forest government, management and ownership. If I have a forest, I will not allow anybody to come and cut down trees, rather I will call on you to come and plant a tree,’ she said.

She called on relevant stakeholders to ensure the inclusion of women in the critical aspect of forest management to address the impact of Climate Change.

Oliseowe, who challenged stakeholders to act now and do what must be done quickly to save mother Earth, added that Climate Change was real, saying that the NDWPD was in special consultative status with the United Nations ECOSOC, accredited to the United Nations Environmental Programme and the Green Climate Fund.